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Beaverton Bakery shuts down after 93 years

Sudden closure of fixture in Old Town draws customers to buy baked goods, share memories of past goodies. The site itself goes back to Beaverton's founding in 1893.

Beaverton Bakery, whose roots go back about as far as Beaverton itself, has announced its closure after 93 years in business.

The bakery itself has run into difficulties in recent times — including a four-day closure in 2017 because of a rat infestation — and the three-building site on Southwest Broadway is for sale. But there was a big crowd inside the bakery the morning of Sept. 27, after news of the closure broke the previous night.

"It's known as one of the best bakeries around," Ally Kershner said. "When I saw they were closing, I rushed down here. It's too bad if you came into the store and found it empty."

Lots of baked goods still were in the display cases, but were emptied quickly as the bakery closed for good that day.

Like other long-time customers with their favorites, Kershner recalled that her family offered trays of Danish pastries from the bakery as birthday treats.

"My birthday is next month and I won't have that anymore," she said. "I might grab some cookies and freeze them, so I'll still have something for my birthday."

The Schubert family, which has run the bakery for more than 50 years, was not available for direct comment.

"It has been a very difficult decisions and the bakery has loved being a part of this community," Carrie Ann Schubert said in a statement posted on Facebook.

"Thank you so much for letting us be a party of your family's traditions and celebrations."

Schubert said no new orders would be taken, but existing orders for wedding cakes would be honored, although others may bake the cakes. The statement was silent about other orders.

A couple of other customers in line at the bakery singled out the maple bars, one of which was served 50 years ago to Robert F. Kennedy when he was campaigning for president in the Oregon primary. (He reportedly liked it.)

"They had the best maple bars in the city. When they stopped making donuts, I was so disappointed, because there is no other place to get the best maple bars around," said Sharon Ralston, who's visited for 50 years.

"I had my wedding cake here, my daughter had her wedding cake here, my cousin had her cake here. I didn't know it was closing until my son texted me."

"I knew it was kind of tough. But I was shocked when I heard it on the news that they were actually closing. So things change – and I am sorry."

Carolyn McCoy, now 75, has been coming to Beaverton Bakery for 60 years. She also swears by the maple bars — and a few other items.

"They make the best goodies in the world," she said.

"I wanted cookies for stocking stuffers" at Christmas. "And the cinnamon bread is to kill for. It makes the best cinnamon toast in the world."

On behalf of Beaverton city government, which is in the midst of a downtown redesign that covers Old Town, Mayor Denny Doyle expressed sadness about the closure.

"Beaverton Bakery has been a city treasure for more than 90 years," the statement said. "We've enjoyed our long-standing partnership over the years, and we thank the Schubert family for their many years of operation and contributions to our community.

"Going forward, the city will continue to focus our efforts on making downtown a vibrant and lively destination for both residents and visitors to this area."

Carrie Ann Schubert took over from her father, Charles Schubert, who started working at the bakery in 1952 and bought the business in 1965.

The site goes back to 1887, when Francis Marion Robinson, Beaverton's first doctor, built a Queen Anne-style home on Southwest Broadway. He added a pharmacy in 1893, the year Beaverton incorporated as a city.

Charles Yeager began the bakery there in 1925. It eventually expanded to cover a movie theater to the west and another building — where wedding cakes were prepared — to the east. A clock designed by Joseph Mayer, built between 1912 and 1915, was placed on the site in 1983.

The city built a plaza at the northeast corner of Broadway and Hall Boulevard in 2004.

The bakery offered a full range of items, among them baked goods, breads and cakes for all occasions.

Beaverton Bakery once had three satellite locations — at Murrayhill in south Beaverton, South Lake Center in Lake Oswego, and the Portland International Airport. But all were shut down, the South Lake Center shop after 20 years.

It also has had tax liens, which are government claims against property when taxes go unpaid.

In February 2017, the bakery shut down for four days after someone reported a rat infestation to the Oregon Department of Agriculture, but reopened after state officials said appropriate steps were taken.

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